7 Women-Led Start-ups That Want to Change How You Think About Sex

Though the Internet might make us feel like everything that could be done with the human body has been done, there are still new frontiers to explore when it comes to sex. The way we define it, think about it, and have it are constantly evolving—and women are at the forefront of this evolution. The tech industry may be notoriously male-dominated, but an increasing number of sex-tech and "fem-tech" companies are led by women. It makes sense: Who better understands what works for women than us?

Beyond selling sex toys (even if they are super fun ones), these women-led companies share a loftier goal: to facilitate honest conversations and maybe even change the way we think about female pleasure and sexual health.

Given how popular sex toys are among both men and women, why are sex toy purchases still considered something that should be kept to yourself?

That's why Unbound sells surprisingly subtle sex-toy-inspired jewelry and thoughtfully curated subscription boxes (think the Birchbox of sex), with everything from lingerie to tampons. The aim, the company says, is to make sex an everyday conversation topic. Plus, the monthly box concept makes pushing your own sexual boundaries further a little less intimidating.

"We want to eradicate the taboos associated with female sexuality and allow women a chance to explore and feel comfortable with something that has historically caused them shame," says Polly Rodriguez, who founded Unbound with Jackie Churchwell and Lorraine White. And can you name a more fun way to do that than by wearing a nipple clamp necklace? We'll wait.

Lioness cofounder and CEO Liz Klinger has a different way of facilitating discussions around sexual health and pleasure: She wants to track them. Her company's smart vibrator collects data about users' vaginal temperature and movements through an app, which keeps them informed about how their bodies work and what techniques work best for them personally.

Once they learn what's normal for them, many users stop comparing themselves to others and feeling inadequate, says Klinger. One woman, for example, took longer to orgasm than her boyfriend's previous partners, which he initially took personally. Then she showed him Lioness's graph of her orgasm pattern, and he finally got that this was just how her body worked.

"Lioness is built on the premise that if we have more ways to learn about ourselves and our own unique bodies, that knowledge will benefit your self-confidence, relationships, and health—basically, your entire life," says Klinger. "All the questions you've had in your head forever but never realized you could explore or ask, you can actually start exploring more."

Women-run startups aren't just getting us to talk about sex more—they're aiming to change how we talk about it. In that spirit, MysteryVibe cofounder and Chief Pleasure Officer Stephanie Alys created Crescendo, a vibrator that adapts to each user's vagina by bending and twisting. Its versatility is meant to eliminate taboos about who uses sex toys and how.

"We felt for too long that pleasure had been segmented and categorized: separate toys for men, for women, for couples, G-spot toys, clitoral toys ... the list goes on," says Alys. "We wanted to make something that better represented the huge diversity of human bodies and the ways that we experience pleasure."

Dame Products' focus is on couples' toys that even out the playing field between penises and vaginas. (Currently, it's an uneven one: Straight women have the fewest orgasms, while straight men have the most.) Dame has only released two toys so far, but they've both made history. Eva, a hands-free couples' vibrator, raised more money through Indiegogo than any other toy on the platform. Fin, a finger vibrator, was the first sex toy ever to crowd-fund on Kickstarter (the site actually changed its rules to allow that to happen).

Though they're shaped very differently, both these toys share a common goal: empowering people to get what they want in bed. "I want to make sex more pleasurable for all, but particularly for those individuals with vulvas," says CEO Alexandra Fine, who cofounded the company with Lieberman. "I want to make quality, reliable tools that help vulva owners achieve more pleasure—an act that I'm 100 percent positive will increase pleasure for all, decrease stress, and make the world a happier place."

Toys are just one way to get people talking about and improving their sex lives. Functional nutritionist and WomanCode author Alisa Vitti decided to make a period-tracking app. She created My FLO for women and their partners to make informed decisions based on where they are in their menstrual cycles. In addition to offering eating and exercise advice, the app tells you what your dating and sex preferences might be at each time of month, reading almost like a love horoscope. If you turn on "PartnerSync," My FLO also tells your partner what kind of dates and sex you'll like.

"I believe in order for any woman to be fully enjoying her sexuality, she needs to start having a healthy, happy period," Vitti says. The app can help women manage PMS symptoms so that they're making the right choices about their bodies at the right time. But, Vitti adds, "What's the point of being symptom-free if you can't use your newly balanced hormones to your advantage? With the PartnerSync feature, everyone has the right information, so you can plan proactively to always be creating moments where you feel totally in sync, in and out of the bedroom. It doesn't just have to be about the stars aligning. It's basic biochemistry and a little coordination."

For Tiffany Gaines, the key to a more harmonious sex life starts with which condoms you're using. After noticing that her friends were embarrassed to buy rubbers, Gaines wanted to make women proud to take responsibility for their sexual health. Her Lovability Condoms come in cute tins with slogans like "Babe with the Power" and "Talk Feminist to Me"—not to help women hide their condoms, but to give them an incentive to carry them and even show them off.

"Safe sex is a commitment not only to our physical well-being but also our emotional and mental well-being," says Gaines. "We're determined to expand and contextualize the subject of sexual health to focus on self-esteem, mutual respect, and the importance of making choices that support our desires—in the bedroom, in the boardroom, and beyond."

There are few topics as taboo as female sexuality, but if there is one, it's probably periods. Put those two things together, and lots of people are afraid to even talk about period sex—let alone have it. But not Lauren Schulte. She co-founded The Flex Company to make sex on your period less messy and less intimidating.

"The purpose for which we exist is to create a world where every woman loves her body," she says. "Our product is only half of the work we do. At our core, we believe that if women felt more comfortable in their own skin, that we would free up time, energy, and mind-space to focus on things that fulfill us."

When women feel more self-confident and sexually empowered, sex becomes better for their partners, too. By challenging the male-dominated version of sex we're too often force-fed, these women are changing sex for everyone—for the better.

This article is part of Summer of Sex, our 12-week long exploration of how women are having sex in 2017.